Steve Waugh recalls how he vowed to become a better captain after being hospitalised

Steve Waugh recalled how he decided to become a better captain when he was in the hospital bed after an on-field collision with former pacer Jason Gillespie in Sri Lanka as a result of which both players were hospitalised. Waugh broke his nose while Gillespie ended up with a broken leg. The incident happened during a 1999 Test match in Colombo. A few months later, Steve would lead Australia to their second World Cup triumph after one stage it looked as if the Aussies would face an early exit from the quadrennial event.

'All of a sudden I was the leader': Steve Waugh

“At 33 it still probably took me 6-12 months to realise my style. I was still probably leading by consensus a bit early on because I’d been mates with these guys (teammates) for a long period of time and all of a sudden I was the leader,” said the former Australian skipper while speaking to Damian Barrett on a recent episode of the AFL journalist’s podcast 'In The Game'.

“So having to separate myself a little bit from the rest of the guys was a challenge. I finally realised that when I was in a hospital bed in Colombo with a broken nose and Jason Gillespie had a broken leg. I was sitting there in a hospital bed thinking, ‘If I never get to captain again, have I done myself justice? Had I done it my way?’ And the answer was, no I hadn’t.From that point on I said just trust my gut instinct and do it my way. And that was probably the turning point in my captaincy career,” the 1999 World Cup winner added.

When the Australian supremacy began

Steve Waugh & Co.'s World Cup 1999 campaign did not get off to a good start as they were given a scare by minnows Scotland who nearly pulled off an upset win. However, losses against New Zealand and Pakistan ruined their chances of making it to the semis as they had to lock horns against a might South African side in their final Super Six game which was a virtual quarterfinal.
Waugh scored an unbeaten 120 against the Proteas to set up a semi-final clash against the same opposition. He was dropped by Herschelle Gibbs at mid-wicket and made them pay for it. Both teams faced each other once again four days later in the second semi-final at Edgbaston. It was an edge-of-the-seat thriller that ended in a tie. However, the Aussies progressed to the final due to a superior net run-rate after having beaten them in the previous contest.

The Steve Waugh-led side decimated Pakistan in a lop-sided final at the 'Mecca of Cricket' Lord's riding on spin legend Shane Warne's six-wicket haul to lift the coveted trophy for the second time. 

This win started the Australian supremacy in world cricket as they went on to retain their World Cup trophy in the next two editions in 2003, and, 2007 respectively under Waugh's successor Ricky Ponting. They also won consecutive ICC Champions Trophy titles in 2006 and, 2009.

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(Image Courtesy: AP)